


Hey DaddyRabbit: Lynda Speaking

by Hypi



Category: Cars (Pixar Movies)
Genre: F/M, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-23
Updated: 2020-04-22
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:22:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23798395
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hypi/pseuds/Hypi
Summary: Inspiration came from the kings tail fin on FF.net with the work called "The Void". Lynda leaves a little gift for strip in order for him to cope with her death.
Relationships: Lynda Weathers/Strip "The King" Weathers
Comments: 5
Kudos: 17





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [the_kings_tail_fin](https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_kings_tail_fin/gifts).



> enjoy some cars related fanficion my friends.

Strip was staring at the freshly packed mound of dirt in front of him. Of what was once the love of his life. He knew this day would be coming, he knew the moment Lynda fell ill that he would have to be the one learning to live without his other half. He knew it when he heard of the goddamn terminal diagnosis. 

He just didn’t expect it to be so soon. He didn’t expect the pain he felt. The total and complete anguish that held his engine block tight. How he felt like he couldn’t breath couldn’t think. How he felt like the entire world was imploding around him and all he could think about was that Lynda wasn’t here. How everything was a constant reminder of her. How even his goddamn paint reminded him of her. He knew this day would come, but why did it have to happen so soon. 

Why did the world have to move on while he had to deal with the neverending void that now consumed his existence? Why couldn’t he have been the first to go? Why would he have to be the one that would have to enter the now empty house day in and day out, a constant reminder of his love who is now six feet under. 

-

Lynda knew Strip would be shattered when she finally passed. She knew Strip would be absolutely heartbroken by her early mortality despite her accepting her fate and comforting him as much as she could. She wanted to do everything she could to make him living without her easier. So she decided to go to Cal for help. 

Now while she wasn’t precisely literate in everything technology can do nowadays, her nephew most definitely was. She was overjoyed when she found out she could put voice memos on the calendar on Strip’s phone. So she did. For nearly every single day dating after the six months, she was given, she left a message. 

Some messages saying a simple I love you, some reliving precious memories she has with him. Some just random every day rambles she would have, others would discuss embarrassing moments or when they were forced to cope with the loss of his brother and sister in law. Some would remiss in the early childbearing years of Cal, of how he once got into the paint meant for repainting the fence and got it all over their bed and him. 

She did it every day she could, even when she became less lucid, even in her final days where she would rarely have a moment alone. She made sure Strip would never find out about what she has done until after she had passed.

In total Lynda had successfully recorded years worth of daily audio for her husband. Some days have more than one recording. Some just a simple good night, morning, and I love you. Some having a recording nearly two hours long. She made sure she had done it all as a final gift to her husband. 

-

It was two weeks after Lynda’s passing when Strip received the first notification on his phone. At first, he didn’t bother thinking it was just another text message wishing him well or offering condolences. He was tired of people trying to sympathize with what he lost, the looks of pity, the faces of concern at his hollowed-out eyes, and tear-stained paint, at his too dirty tires and wing. He was tired of looking at his phone and only seeing another “I’m so sorry for your loss”.

When Strip finally gained the motivation to reach over for his phone with his tire, fully prepared to delete another condolence notification. He saw something different; it wasn’t a tweet, a comment, or another goddamn text message. No, it was a calendar notification, a voice memo at that simply stating “Hey DaddyRabbit: Lynda Speaking”. In his curiosity and desperation that maybe just maybe this is a little gift from Lynda, he opened it. 

As soon as he heard her voice, he nearly broke down on his tires and sobbed. He couldn’t believe it. He had to be dreaming right? There was no way his late wife was coming out of his speakers laughing and talking. There was no way he was hearing himself in the background asking Lyn what she wanted to do for the day. But it was, it was most definitely his late wife speaking through his phone. As soon as he realized this was in fact not a dream he was having, he scrambled to press the record button before quickly rewinding the memo his engine tight with apprehension, tears spilling over his fender and onto the ground. All he could do as he listened to his late wife’s voice was settle down on his tires and let his tears fall yet again. 

“Remember when we went to Radiator Springs Strip? Remember when you tried to drift on dirt and only nearly ended up in a cactus patch yourself? 

‘Lyn honey what do you want to do today’

‘Give me a moment daddy rabbit I have to do something’

‘Alright dear’

I fondly remember the small pout on your face when you came back from the Butte, how it reminded me so much of Cal when he didn’t get something his way. I remember simply laughing knowing the drive you had planned didn’t go exactly how you wanted, especially with lightning smirking right behind you. 

Strip chuckled at that memory, knowing exactly what trip she was referencing too, feeling slight embarrassment in his hood. The tears have long stopped as he remembered with her, forgetting she was even gone for a second, only wearing a faint smile as he listened to the remainder of her recalling what once was.

I’m sorry that if you’re hearing this I am probably long gone. I’m sorry that I was the first one to go daddy rabbit. I’m sorry that you have to figure out how to live life without me for however long you have left. I love you Daddy Rabbit. 

Strip could feel the tears in his eyes and his engine heavy when the memo came to a close, that’s all he felt these days along with the never-ending mind-numbing void. As soon as he heard the voice memo finally cut out he offered a weak whisper of ”a wouldn’t be here without you dear” before going into the calendar and for once since he awoke to her cold body, felt absolute delight at seeing the years worth of near-daily voice memos.


	2. Chapter 2

It was their anniversary, well technically was going to be their anniversary, was it not for Lyn’s passing. Every day was hard for Strip but today was more so than others. Today he couldn’t sleep, couldn’t eat, couldn’t drink, couldn’t think. All he could do was feel the all-consuming grief, anguish, and loss. He felt it everywhere, he felt it when he breathed, felt it in his body panels, in his engine. He knew grief hurt but he never has felt it this bad, even when he awoke to his cold dead wife in their bed. Even at the funeral when he had to watch his wife be lowered into the ground knowing he would never ever see her again in person. Only in his dreams and photographs. So when he heard the special calendar notification on his phone he wanted to throw it across his now cold bedroom. Except he couldn’t, like an addict desperately needing their next fix he unlocked his phone, opened the voice memo, and set up the recording. Only to realize this memo was over two and a half hours long. Much longer than any others he has ever received from her. Dreading yet excited for what this memo would bring he simply pressed play awaiting the memories that would soon be filling his conscious. 

“Strip do you remember us planning for our wedding? How nervous and excited we were. Remember when you were shaking as you presented the engagement rim and stumbled out the words that you practiced for months. I remember how you desperately wanted to wait for the exact perfect moment but got impatient. “

Strip chuckled at the mention of him being impatient. It was true, he meant to wait for her birthday that was only a month after he asked her to marry him. He remembered how he couldn’t wait any longer, simply staring at her leaning against his side watching the storm clouds move in. How he left her claiming he needed to get something from their room but that he would be right back. How he stumbled into their bedroom, his wing nearly knocking their trinkets over before he simply went and grabbed the rim he bought months prior after a race in Florida. How quickly he went back to where Lyn was, nerves wracking his entire body. As he listened to his late wife’s perspective on their messy engagement he settled down on his tires, remembering vividly how exactly that day went. 

Lynda noticed something was up with Strip when he suddenly lifted himself up and quickly drove to their room claiming he needed to get something. She knew he was bound to propose to her soon. She already stumbled across the rim months ago while looking for something to show a friend. If there was one thing her boyfriend wasn’t good at doing was having good hiding spots for his surprises. She started to chuckle when she heard a commotion inside the house, assuming due to Strip’s sudden need to move as fast as he possibly could in the house, he must’ve bumped into some things with his wing and rear. 

As soon as her boyfriend returned she knew what he was going to do. He was going to propose, right before a thunderstorm they were lazily watching come over their ranch. She knew when she saw his all too shaky body, how he was stuttering over his words. 

“Lyn I’ve been working up to this for a while. You see, I love you so much, Lyn. I love waking up in the morning and seeing you first thing. I love going to bed and feeling you right beside me. I love looking at the pits during the race and seeing you smile by me. I love spending every single second of every single day with you. I love the long hours of comfortable silence. I love everything about you, all your flaws, all your quirks, everything. I can’t imagine life without you in it. Which brings me to the big question. Will you marry me, Lynda?” 

Strip’s nerves had eased as soon as he asked her the big question. He could see the tears forming in Lynda’s eyes, how her face changed to an instant smile when she realized she wasn’t dreaming. How she simply stuttered out yes before bringing her lips to his a bit clumsily due to how his front dipped. 

Strip laughed when he heard Lyn mention the sloppy kiss they shared after he popped the big question. He remembered how they both laughed and how much he was shaking as he gave her the rim. How the sky was getting much darker and they could hear the thunder incoming. He remembered how they stayed out on the porch until it began to rain. How excited Lynda was as soon as they entered the house to make the announcement to her friends. He remembered the familiar scent of rain that soon filled the house bringing a strange comfort with it. 

Strip listened to Lynda’s continuation of the story of their engagement, awkward moments an all. Her sarcastic nags at how he really couldn’t have waited another month to ask her to marry him and had to do it right before a major storm hit their house. How he had to lift himself up a bit so the kiss wouldn’t have been as awkward the first time Lynda kissed him that evening. 

“Remember when we woke up the following day and decided to tell Tex the news. The first thing he said was ‘Goddamnit Strip! I knew you couldn’t have waited another month to pop the big question. Not to mention you did it at your house, right before a storm. You really don’t have a single romantic part in your body’. I remember your shocked face at hearing Tex’s rant which may I remind you nearly sent me into a fit of laughter, how you could only stutter at Tex’s response trying to come up with some type of comeback. How relieved you looked when Tex burst out laughing over the phone finally giving you the congratulations you expected.”

Strip gave a pained laugh at hearing his late wife’s imitation of Tex with his thick Texan accent, knowing that the end of the story was near, that he would no longer be able to hear new exerts of this story in his wife’s point of view. 

“I remember so much Strip, so much of our marriage, the hardships, the laughter, every single awkward occurrence we experienced. All the races I attended to support you. I know this is our first anniversary where I’m not there and I’m sorry, but you gave me a happy marriage Strip, a happy life, something more than I could ever ask for. So thank you, you old daddy rabbit.” 

Strip could feel himself choking up when he heard the last few sentences of the memo, the grief that left him briefly hitting him again like a ton of bricks. Yet, something was different, He didn’t want to throw his phone against the wall, he didn’t want to break down and simply hide from the world and the people who care about him in their bed. No, he wanted to celebrate, his heart was heavy, yes but he wanted to celebrate their anniversary. Maybe not entirely for him, but for Lyn. He wanted to do this for Lyn. So with his heart heavy, he reached for his phone again calling Tex offering to go out for a pint of oil and to remiss the good old days. 

Maybe he was finally moving on, he would never forget Lyn, but maybe just maybe he could find some happiness without her, a life maybe.


End file.
